Confidence leads to small super fund growth
Tower Trustsays the recent strong growth in small super funds has been largely driven by increasing investor confidence in a poor performing environment.
Tower Trust manager of superannuation services Peter Burgess says in the current climate, investors want more control over where and how their super money is being invested.
As reported in the last edition of theAustralian Prudential Regulation Authority’s Super Trends survey, small super funds with less than five members experienced a $2.5 billion growth spurt in the March quarter, defying an overall national slump.
The 2.4 per cent rise in the assets of small super funds in the past three months compares to a decrease of $8.9 billion, or 1.7 per cent, of total Australian superannuation assets for the same period.
Burgess says the growth in small super funds is further evidence that investors, tired of poor performing funds, are confident they can do a better job themselves.
“The view out in the community is that people are getting very tired and concerned about continuing poor superannuation returns,” Burgess says.
Burgess says that investors are also being drawn to small super funds by a desire for greater investment flexibility as well as estate planning and tax minimisation advantages, as small super funds can provide exposure to direct property not always available through a master fund or other type of super fund.
“Investors have also been wanting to get a piece of the booming property cycle and they are now doing this through their super funds,” he says.
Recommended for you
With the final tally for FY25 now confirmed, how many advisers left during the financial year and how does it compare to the previous year?
HUB24 has appointed Matt Willis from Vanguard as an executive general manager of platform growth to strengthen the platform’s relationships with industry stakeholders.
Investment manager Drummond Capital Partners has announced a raft of adviser-focused updates, including a practice growth division, relaunched manager research capabilities, and a passive model portfolio suite.
When it comes to M&A activity, the share of financial buyers such as private equity firms in Australia fell from 67 per cent to 12 per cent in the last financial year.